Dr Richard Happ was born in 1971. After studying law in Kiel (Germany) and Surrey (England), he received his doctorate in 2000 and carried out his legal training in Kiel, Hamburg (Germany), Brussels (Belgium) and Speyer (Germany). Richard Happ joined Luther's Hamburg office in 2001 and since then has worked as a lawyer specialising in litigation and dispute resolution. He is co-head of the German-wide Complex Disputes team.

Areas of Practice

Dr Richard Happ advises and represents both companies and states in complex litigation and arbitration proceedings. He specializes in arbitration proceedings where a government is involved, in particular, investment arbitration proceedings, and in arbitration proceedings in the energy sector. Richard Happ already acted as an advisor in disputes arising from gas storage and supply contracts, the sale of gas networks, claims for compensation under energy law, the construction of power plants, investments in wind power plants and solar plants, long-term supply and purchase right contracts, and disputes in connection with nuclear power plants. The relevant arbitration proceedings were conducted in accordance with the applicable international rules (DIS, ICC, ICSID, SCC, UNCITRAL) in Frankfurt (Germany), Paris (France), Stockholm (Sweden), Geneva (Switzerland) und Washington, D.C. (USA). He is also regularly appointed as an arbitrator in disputes arising out of joint ventures and M&A transactions (post M&A disputes).

In his specialist area, Dr Richard Happ has for years been recommended and honoured in clients’ guides to the best lawyers, such as the JUVE Guide, Chambers, The GAR 100, The Legal 500, Expert Guides and Who's Who Legal. He has written more than two dozen articles and books on the topic of arbitration proceedings.

Honors & Distinctions

The Legal 500 (2019): Recommendation in the category "Dispute resolution - arbitration" (including international arbitration) and in the category "Commercial disputes"